As cold and flu season takes off into full swing, I thought I’d share one of our favorite home remedies. This is our go-to tea for our family for colds and flus. It works wonders!
I first found this tea recipe in a book called Be Your Own Doctor by Rachel Weaver, Master Herbalist. While I am not an herbalist, I enjoy using herbal home remedies to help boost our immune systems and recover from sickness naturally. Of course, I am not advocating for never going to a doctor, but it can be helpful to have some of these remedies available when a sickness isn’t emergency-worthy!
All of the ingredients are common kitchen herbs, with the exception of fenugreek. However, if you don’t have one on hand, you can just leave it out and use what you do have! If you don’t have fresh ginger, you can use ground ginger instead.
Here is the recipe:
Add 2 sticks cinnamon,
a few peppercorns,
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and grated,
a few cloves
to 4 quarts cold water in a saucepan.
Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat and add
1 tsp dried or 1 sprig fresh (each)
thyme,
sage,
marjoram,
and fenugreek seeds.
Cover with a lid (to keep in the volatile essential oils) and steep for 5 minutes.
You can also add anise seed if you have a cough that is not productive and you would like the help of a mild expectorant.
Strain the tea after at least 5 minutes of steeping and sweeten with
honey to taste.
You can also add
a squeeze of lemon
and/or orange zest if desired.
Drink as hot as you can bear, and if you are able to, take a nap under warm covers. Drink a few cups of the tea throughout the day, reheating as needed.
*I am not a medical professional, and this blog post is not meant to be medical advice. This recipe has not been evaluated by the FDA.
This tea is also delicious and can be an enjoyable winter drink! Give it a try and let me know what you think!
This year we are also planning to offer a VERY small number of herbal home remedy shares. If you’re interested in learning more, be sure you are signed up for our Mailchimp email list!
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